CHRONOLOGICAL SURVEY

OF THE CHIEF EVENTS IN THE LIFE OF H. P. BLAVATSKY AND

COL. HENRY S. OLCOTT,

FROM JANUARY, 1881, TO MARCH, 1882, INCLUSIVE.

January 1—Date of Charter of the Prayāg Theosophical Society,
Allāhābād (Gen. Report of the 31st Anniversary and Convention of the
T.S., p. 100), although the Charter was not actually forwarded until
July 27 (Theos., II, Suppl. to Sept., 1881) . Bābū Benee Madhab
Bhattachārya has already bought a plot of ground to build a
Theosophical Hall. The Branch is to be composed exclusively of the
natives of India.

January 4—A. O. Hume is working on the last pages of his
forthcoming pamphlet, Hints on Esoteric Theosophy, No. 1 (LBS., p. 305).

February (approx.)—Damodar’s relatives withdraw their support
of the T.S. (ODL., II, 291-93; Ransom, 156).

February 17—General Council meeting is held: Rules are revised
and simplified; decided by unanimous vote that the President and the
Corresponding Secretary will hold office for life; Dāmodar appointed
Joint Recording Secretary (Ransom, 155-56) .

February 19—The Adept known as Hillarion Smerdis visits the
Founders “en route for Tibet and has been looking over, in and through
the whole situation . . . He gave his views on India, Bombay, The
Theosophical Society in Bombay, Ceylon, England and Europe,
Christianity and other subjects, highly interesting” (Diaries). Leaves
as a memento a much-worn gold-embroidered head-covering (ODL., II, 294)
.

Page xxiv

February 25—H.S.O. has a long consultation with H.P.B.,
resulting, apparently as a consequence of Hillarion’s visit, in
agreement to reconstruct the T.S. on a different basis, “putting the
Brotherhood idea more prominently forward and keeping the occultism
more under cover—in short to have a secret society for it . . .”
(Diaries; ODL., II, 294).

March 13 (1st o.s.)—Assassination of Emperor Alexander II of
Russia; this results in grave shock to H.P.B.; she is ill. (Vera P. de
Zhelihovsky in Lucifer, XV, Feb., 1894, p. 474) .

March 17—H. S. O. receives order to go to Ceylon in April
(Ransom, 155).

March—The Sinnetts go to England for a holiday, via Calcutta
and Ceylon. A. P. Sinnett works on his Occult World which was “mainly
written at sea” (Autobiogr.; ED., 29; Vania, 105).

April 22—H. S. O. sails for Ceylon, in company with Aeneas
Bruce of Scotland; reach Galle on the 26th. This trip was mainly for
the purpose of raising an Educational Fund to start schools with (ODL.,
II, 295; Ransom, 158; Theos., II, May, 1881, p. 184).

May 5—H. S. O. finishes the first draft of his Buddhist
Catechism, which he compiled on this trip to Ceylon (ODL., II, 299) .

June—First edition of Sinnett’s Occult World published by
Trübner & Co., London (Theos., II, Suppl. to July, 1881).

June—Approximate time when Mrs. Marie Gebhard makes her first
contact with the Theosophical Center in London (ED., 30) .

July 4—A. P. Sinnett returns to India alone, having left his
wife in England on account of health. Arrives in Bombay on the P.
& O. Company’s mail steamer and stays for a short time with
H.P.B.; then goes to Allāhābād (OW., 176; Autobiogr.; Theos., II,
Suppl. to Aug., 1881, p. 1; ED., 33-34, where June is wrongly
mentioned).

July 5—Date on which Sinnett receives his first letter from
Master K. H. upon returning to India, in reply to one he sent via
H.P.B. shortly before leaving London. Beginning of the vast
correspondence which ultimately enabled him to write Esoteric Buddhism.
(ML., No. IX, pp. 38-51; OW., 176, Amer. ed.; Theos., II, Suppl. to
Aug. 1881, “The Bombay T.S.”; Autobiogr.).

Page xxv

July 13—Date of the Document published in The Spiritualist of
August 19, 1881 and signed by a number of natives, among them Dāmodar,
concerning the fact of seeing the Brothers and knowing them. Coulombs’
signatures affixed also.

July 14—Mrs. Patience Sinnett gives birth in England to second
child, still-born (Autobiogr.).

July 22—H.P.B. leaves Bombay for Allāhābād and Simla to stay
for some time with the Humes at Rothnay Castle. It must have been on
this visit that Sinnett escorted H.P.B. up the Tonga Road. Hume’s
gradual discontent seems to date from approximately that time (Theos.,
II, Suppl. to Aug., 1881, last page, 2nd col. bottom; Ransom, 162;
Autobiogr.).

July 24—H. S. Olcott’s Buddhist Catechism published both in
English and Sinhalese. Means for this supplied by Mrs. Ilangakoon of
Mātara. A third edition became necessary before the end of August
(ODL., I, 284; II, 301-02; Ransom, 159).

August 21—Formation of the “Anglo-Indian Branch” of The
Theosophical Society at Simla, during H.P.B.’s visit there; it became
later known as the Simla Eclectic T.S., with A. O. Hume, President, A.
P. Sinnett, Vice-President, and Ross Scott, Secretary (The Pioneer,
Aug. 26, 1881; Theos., II, Suppl. to Sept., 1881, p. 1; Ransom, 162).

September—H.P.B. is at Simla most of the month, as evidenced
by several of her letters dated from there.

September 30 (18th old style)—Date of the French letter
written by General Rostislav Andreyevich de Fadeyev, H.P.B.’s uncle, to
A. P. Sinnett, enclosing affidavit concerning H.P.B.’s family
background and antecedants, intended to counteract inimical attacks on
her (Theos., III, Suppl. to Jan., 1882; Collected Writings, Vol. III).

October—Wm. Q. Judge is at Carupano, Venezuela, on mining
business.

October—H.P.B. is still at Simla.

October—First installment of “Fragments of Occult Truth”
written by A. O. Hume is published in The Theosophist (Vol. III, pp.
17-22).

Page xxvi

October 21—Party made up of Col. H. S. Olcott and several
Ceylonese workers embark at Colombo and make a trip to Tinnevelly to
form a Branch there. Return to Ceylon the 27th (ODL., II, 309-14;
Them., III, Suppl. to Nov., 1881, p. 2).

October (last week)—Most likely time when H.P.B. went to
Lahore and saw Master M. (LBS., VII, p. 9). She starts on an extensive
tour in Northern India, apparently on order of her Teacher.

November 1—H.P.B. arrives at Sahāranpur; dines with Mr. and
Mrs. Fisher, staying, late at their house (LBS., No. VII).

November 2—H.P.B. spends most of the day with Williams (ditto).

November 3—H.P.B. starts for Dehra Dūn, North of Hardvār, with
Ross Scott who had come from Multān to join her (LBS., No. VII, p. 9) .
Arrives late same day (ML., 461) .

November 6—Changes effected in the Prayāg Theosophical
Society: the word “Psychic” is added to its name and Rules are
established; any F. T. S. is eligible to membership in it, and not only
natives, as originally conceived. S. J. Padshah assists in this, being
on his way from Bombay to Lucknow (Theos., III, Suppl. to Dec., 1881,
p. 1; ibid., IV, Suppl. to Feb. 1883, p. 3).

November 6-9—This seems to be the most likely period when
H.P.B., being quite ill, receives orders “to, leave the railways and
other highways,” and to let herself be guided, by a man sent to her for
the purpose, into the jungles of the sacred forest of Deobund; she is
to meet there a certain Lama Debodurgai who would heal her. Her illness
is greatly relieved on this trip (H.P.B.’s letters to her relatives in
Lucifer, XV, Feb., 1895, pp. 473-74; Path, X, April, 1895, pp. 6-7) .

November 10—H.P.B. is back at Debra Dūn; receives orders to
proceed to Meerut on the 12th (LBS., VIII, p. 10) .

November 13—H.P.B. is at Meerut; receives Nov. 14th a telegram
from Sinnett, sent by order of Master M., to come to Allāhābād (ML.,
CXIV, p. 449; LBS., IX, p. 12). She stays at Meerut until the evening
of the 15th.

November 16—H.P.B. goes to Bareilly, capital of Rohilkhand;
meets there S. J. Padshah by pre-arrangement, on his way from Lucknow.
Rohilkhand Theosophical Society formed at Bareilly on the 17th (LBS.,
IX, p. 12; Theos., III, Suppl. to Dec., 1881, p. 1).

December, 13—H. S. O. sails home from Ceylon, after a very
strenous sojourn there, conventions, trips to many towns, etc., Reaches
Bombay on the 19th. Receives a kind message from the Master about his
success in Ceylon (ODL., Il, 325-26).

December 25—General Council meets to discuss the policy of
shifting Headquarters. Founders decide to spend part of each year at
Calcutta, Bombay and Ceylon. This was not carried out, however (Ransom,
162-63; Theos., III, Suppl. to Dec., 1881. p. 8 fnote).

February—Sinnett receives his first letter from Master K. H,
after the latter returns from his initiatory trials (ML., No. XLV, pp.
264-68).

February 14—H. S. O. delivers at Bombay his lecture on “The
Spirit of the Zoroastrian Religion.” MSS in H.P.B.’s handwriting in the
Adyar Archives shows that he had special help given him in preparing
its text. Pārsīs print it in English and Gujarāti, distributing some
twenty thousand copies (ODL., II, 333-34; Ransom, 168).

Autobiogr.—An Autobiography of A. P. Sinnett, dated June 3rd,
1912, with additions dated May, 1916, and Jan. 2, 1920, which exists in
the form of a typewritten MSS. in the Archives of the Mahatma Letters
Trust in London.

Diaries—Colonel Henry S. Olcott’s original Diaries in the
Adyar Archives.

Hints—Hints on Esoteric Theosophy, No. 1, by A. O. Hume
(though publ. anonymously). Issued under the Authority of The
Theosophical Society in 1882. Benares and London: Theos. Publ. Society;
Adyar, Madras: The Theosophist Office, 1882: 131 pp.—No. 2 was
published about a year later. 2nd ed. of both appeared in 1909. Paging
differs.

ODL—Old Diary Leaves, by Henry Steel Olcott. Second Series,
1878-83. Adyar: Theosophical Publishing House, 1900; 2nd ed., Adyar,
1928. The original edition contains nine illustrations, all of them
being views of the Theos. Society’s Estate at Adyar. Being too faded
for further reproductions, eight of these have been eliminated from the
2nd ed. of 1928.

Path—The Path. Published and Edited in New York by W. Q.
Judge. Vols. I-X, April, 1886—March, 1896 incl.